As the economy continues its record-long expansion, the Federal Reserve voted to leave its key benchmark rate unchanged at its meeting Wednesday. Consumers buying a home or car should continue to see lower borrowing costs as a result. Even though the Fed’s key rate isn’t directly tied to mortgage rates, they do often influence them.

This marked the final Fed meeting of the year for the Federal Reserve. Officials suggested no rate changes for 2020 and projected only one increase in 2021 and one in 2022.

The Fed’s interest rates remain low by historical standards at 1.5% to 1.75% (down from 5.25% before the last recession). Fed officials adjust interest rates in helping to speed or slow economy, when necessary.

With interest rates holding steady, “this is the time to pay down debt and boost savings,” Greg McBride, chief financial analyst at Bankrate.com, told CNBC.

The average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage is substantially lower since the end of last year. Bankrate reports that it is averaging 3.9% this week, down from 4.9% a year ago. Those who purchased their house in the last year will want to consider refinancing into a lower rate, which could save them about $150 a month, McBride says.

As for the Fed, it cut its key interest rate three times this year between July and late October. But the economic outlook remains strong and they are seeing little reason to continue cutting rates.

“Our economic outlook remains a favorable one,” Jerome H. Powell, the Fed chair, said on Wednesday following the meeting. Employment and consumer spending remain strong, and recession fears from six months ago have faded. “With a strong household sector and supportive monetary and financial conditions, we expect moderate growth to continue,” Powell said. “Inflation is barely moving up, notwithstanding that unemployment is at 50-year lows and expected to remain there. We have learned that unemployment can remain at quite low levels for an extended period of time without unwanted upward pressure on inflation.”

More first-time buyers emerged on the market in the third quarter—a modest rise, but one that economists are still upbeat about.

First-time buyers purchased 591,000 homes in the third quarter, a year-over-year increase of 1%, Genworth Mortgage Insurance reports. First-time buyers comprised 39% of all buyers in the single-family market, and 55% of purchase mortgages.

A large number of millennials are beginning to reach their early 30s. The average homeownership rate is 15 percentage points higher for those aged 30–34 compared to those aged 25–29, U.S. Census Bureau data shows.

“The sharp increase in the homeownership rate from late 20s to early 30s implies that millennials are in the middle of their transition from renting to owning, which explains the higher mix of first-time home buyers in the housing market,” the Genworth report notes. “Millennials currently span the ages of 23 and 38, so their transition is only around halfway complete.”

Thirty-two states saw an uptick in first-time buyers in the third quarter. Florida saw the fastest year-over-year growth at 6% in the third quarter, followed by Texas at 3%. Other states seeing large growth in their first-time home buyer market included California, Arizona, Georgia, New Jersey, Washington, and Illinois.

“Lower interest rates and slower growth in home prices have helped improve housing affordability and drive the rebound in the first-time home buyer market,” the report notes. The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 3.66% in the third quarter for the entire market; the interest rate for first-time buyers was 4.11%–the lowest level since the fourth quarter of 2016.

Low down payment mortgages are a major source for first-time home buyers. Eighty-eight percent of purchase loans in 2018 went to first-time buyers with a 3%-5% down payment, according to the Genworth report.

Vermont may offer some of the best opportunities for a winter investment property, according to new rankings released by Vacasa, a U.S. vacation rental management company. The firm identified the best places to buy a vacation home in 2019, factoring in aggregate cap rates and the ratio of a property’s net operating income over its cost.

“Those that made the list this year have an almost built-in guest population, as they’re situated just a short drive from highly populated residential markets and draw plenty of visitors from the surrounding area,” Vacasa researchers note in the study. “And while winter activities bring many travelers to these destinations, the summer offers opportunities for hiking, mountain biking, kayaking, and more that keep vacation homes booked when the snow melts.”

The 8 best places to buy a winter vacation home in 2019, according to Vacasa, are:

1. Killington, Vt.

• Cap rate: 8.31%
• Median home cost: $211,172

2. Big Sky, Mt.

• Cap rate: 6.10%
• Median home cost: $585,000

3. Breckenridge, Colo.

• Cap rate: 5.56%
• Median home cost: $556,905

4. Dillon, Colo.

• Cap rate: 4.92%
• Median home cost: $401,894

5. Ludlow, Vt.

• Cap rate: 4.83%
• Median home cost: $304,273

6. Rhododendron, Ore.

• Cap rate: 4.73%
• Median home cost: $316,712

7. Warren, Vt.

• Cap rate: 4.57%
• Median home cost: $263,752

8. Leavenworth, Wash.

• Cap rate: 4.36%
• Median home cost: $441,617

Veterans may be eligible to buy larger homes in pricier communities—still without a down payment—starting next year. Those taking out Veteran Affairs–backed mortgages will find caps removed on what they can spend in 2020.

The Blue Water Navy Veterans Act of 2019 removed the caps for the new year. But military members on active duty and veterans will still need to qualify for the mortgage and verify they can afford the monthly payments.

“It gives the veterans the opportunity to buy homes in the areas they want to buy in,” Kyle Reed, a real estate pro with Pauly Presley Realty in Austin, Texas, told realtor.com®. “It opens up some areas in cities to VA loans … that maybe veterans didn’t have access to before without putting a bunch of money down.”

VA loans have been capped at different amounts nationwide. Borrowers could take out more on a VA loan in a high-priced area like San Francisco, for example, than they could in Detroit, where homes tend to cost less. If they exceeded the set limits in the city where they lived, they were required to put down 25% of the difference on the mortgage. If they stayed within the loan limits, they could get a 0% VA loan.

Under the new rules, vets can get a loan amount in what they can qualify for and are not bound by city caps. Banks can still put in some restrictions to protect themselves against defaults. For example, some lenders may require higher credit scores or debt-to-income ratios in qualifying for the loans, realtor.com® reports. The loans likely will only apply to a borrower’s primary residence too.

The change in the VA loan caps takes effect Jan. 1, 2020.